Barbara Bynum

Since moving to Montrose over a decade ago, Barbara has had the opportunity to serve on both nonproﬁt boards and in elected positions on special government boards. She is passionate about the community and eager to volunteer her time to be part of discussions that contribute to solutions that improve Montrose and the lives of people in the community. She sees the work the City is doing as innovative and exciting and wants to be part of that work, helping Montrose to continue moving forward.

Barbara's experiences thus far have provided her with a set of skills that make her an eﬀective councilor. Through her work with the Montrose Recreation District she has experience with large capital projects, the related infrastructure, and the accompanying public ﬁnance tools. Her State Land Board experience has provided an extensive background in public lands management. Additional experiences, such as serving as vice-president of the school board and participating in the Chamber’s leadership class, have taught her much about the people and organizations in Montrose.

Barbara's extended family is heavily invested in the tourism industry in Moab, Utah as owners and operators of hotels, outdoor outfitting companies, and restaurants. Her familiarity with this industry and its issues provide her with a framework for helping the city continue to develop its potential in the tourism industry.

Her formal education includes a four-year liberal arts education that has taught her to think critically, to draw connections across disciplines, to conduct research and ask questions, and to communicate eﬀectively. Additionally, in June she completed a three-week program “Senior Executives in State and Local Government” at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. This intensive program focused on developing the skills and knowledge necessary to exercise eﬀective leadership at the state and local levels of government.

Barbara enjoys participating in community events, festivals, and budget meetings. She reads multiple print and online media as a way to stay informed about what is going on and considers herself to be an optimistic and enthusiastic person who strives to work collaboratively and civilly with others. She believes that it is an honor and a privilege to be entrusted with the work that local governments and special districts do on behalf of their constituents.

She and husband Kelly and have been married 23 years and have two teenagers; Maggie is in college and Danny attends Montrose High School. After living on the Front Range they decided that they wanted to live and raise their family in Western Colorado. They picked Montrose because of its quality of life and the opportunities it provided their family.

"We love playing in Montrose’s backyard including skiing, biking, rafting, 4-wheeling, ﬁshing, canyoneering, and hiking. We’ve even played golf at Black Canyon, so I can honestly say that we 'live here and play everywhere!'”